Another barbershop is giving haircut discounts to kids who read
UPDATE: Oct. 14, 2016, 1:45 p.m. EDT Updated with comments from Alex Fuller.
The Fuller Cut in Ypsilanti, Michigan, is the latest barbershop to make waves for its educational discount program – $2 off a haircut for any child who reads to him.
Ryan Griffin, a barber at the shop, read about a few other barbershops who were doing similar programs back in August 2015. So, Griffin, shop owner Alex Fuller and Fuller's wife got started collecting books.
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The Fuller Cut believes in empowering children – and since the barbershop is in a predominantly black neighborhood, they mostly stock books that positively portray African American characters.
“What we want to do is get kids reading more. Just enrich their lives," Fuller, who is the owner and barber at the shop, told Mashable.
"See all the positives that are in books, take them out of the TV. You’ve got TV and video games that have taken over the young blacks, and what you’ve got to do is get them focused on reading these days because that’ll benefit them in the long run.”
The Fuller Cut's recent Facebook post addresses the derogatory responses the barbershop has received regarding the program.
"Because our majority customers are African American, we prefer books within this cultural dynamic," The Fuller Cut wrote on Facebook. "We do not do this to be separate or be inconsiderate to any and all other cultures and skin colors; it is simply because the faces and stories in the books look like them, which inspires them to be proud of their individual amazingness."
"Currently, there is a plethora of access to reading other types of books--in the schools and within life in general," the post continues. "But by seeing beautiful reflections of themselves in the books, we empower them and their future in this world, AND we connect them with all humanity by first teaching them how to love and be proud of themselves."
Fuller is thrilled about the attention his shop has been getting, because he wants this trend to spread to more barbershops.
“If we can have other barbershops do this … that’s our main goal. It’s not just for us, but just to spread the word that reading is very important," he told Mashable.
"And especially in our barbershop, because we're mostly an African American-based barbershop, even though we cut everybody’s hair, we just wanted to have a chance to present that positive image and see that there’s more out there, and with the books that they read, that’s what we’re trying to enlighten a bit.”
Here are some more adorable photos of The Fuller Cut's customers reading.
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Sophie was a Viral Content Intern for the Watercooler channel. More writing and other stuff by Sophie can be found at www.sophiehirsh.com.
